Hockey India rewards the women’s team with Rs 50 crore after a historic fifth-place finish in the World Cup

Hockey India President Tirkey, PR Sreejesh congratulates the women’s team for finishing 5th in the World Cup (ANI Image) NEW DELHI: Hockey India has announced a prize money of Rs 50 crore for the Indian women’s hockey team following their impressive fifth-place finish at the 2026 FIH Women’s Ice Hockey World Championship in Amstelveen. The reward comes after India recorded their best World Cup finish in 52 years, underlining the progress the team has made during the tournament.

India finished fifth after beating Germany

India, led by captain Salima Tete, signed off their campaign with a convincing 3-1 win over world No.5 Germany in a qualifying match to secure fifth place. The result marked India’s second best finish in World Cup history. Their only better performance came in the inaugural year in 1974 when they finished fourth.India’s most recent campaign has been particularly notable for its consistency against some of the world’s top teams.

One defeat for the entire tournament

Under head coach Sjoerd Marijne, India suffered only one defeat during the competition. The team held strong sides including China, England and Australia to draws while producing an emphatic 6–1 win over South Africa.Hockey India’s remuneration package will be shared between the players and the support staff. Each team member will receive Rs 2 million, while the support staff members will receive Rs 1 million each.Hockey India President Padma Dr Dilip Tirkey congratulated the team for their success and said, “This is a historic result for Indian women’s hockey. To finish fifth in the World Cup after 52 years is a testament to the hard work, resilience and fighting spirit shown by this team throughout the tournament. On behalf of Hockey India, I am delighted to announce a cash prize of Rs 50 lakh and a hope of Rs 50 lakh to our team.” it inspires players to keep raising the bar.”Responding to the president’s sentiments, Hockey India general secretary Bhola Nath Singh said: “Salima and her team have done the country proud with a campaign that has seen them compete against and hold their own against some of the best in the world. This announcement is our way of recognizing their determination and hard work and we hope it will further motivate the team as they focus on the Asian Games.”